The young Melton cricketer who became a Test legend

Stuart Broad (left) pictured as a young man shortly after joining Leicestershire and (right) playing at The Oval for England in his final match
Match photo: GettyImages — Stuart Broad (left) pictured as a young man shortly after joining Leicestershire and (right) playing at The Oval for England in his final match Match photo: GettyImages

Stuart has decided to call stumps on a career which has taken him from learning the ropes as a schoolboy cricketer with Melton’s Egerton Park club to a remarkable haul of more than 600 Test Match wickets for England.

It was a poignant moment on Sunday morning when he took the field with his great mate and fellow bowling legend, Jimmy Anderson, to play his last ever innings, in the fifth Ashes test at The Oval.

The Australian team formed a guard of honour as he took the field to illustrate the impact he has had on the game at the highest level.

LONDON, ENGLAND - JULY 30: Stuart Broad of England walks out to bat in his last test match, after announcing his retirement from cricket yesterday prior to Day Four of the LV= Insurance Ashes 5th Test Match between England and Australia at The Kia Oval on July 30, 2023 in London, England. (Photo by Gareth Copley/Getty Images)

Today (Monday) he was bowling his final deliveries in an England shirt in a bid to help level the series on his last day on a cricket field.

Memories will be drifting back for many in Melton cricketing circles to the days when a young fair-haired boy was taking wickets and crashing boundaries in local matches.

The late David Glover, a former chair of Egerton Park CC, told the Melton Times back in 2016 about those days when he shared a pitch with a young man destined for greatness.

“It was quite clear we had something special,” David said.

A five-year-old Stuart Broad pictured at Egerton Park Cricket Club with dad, Chris, back in 1991

“He would be given the ball, especially if we were up against it, and produce a miserly spell to dry up the runs and get us back in to the game.

“It was the same with the bat. He could be listed at number eight, but if quick wickets were lost he was often promoted up the order to steady the ship.

“Nothing ever fazed him, and it was all done with that wonderful smile on his face.

“Once the game was over, while the rest of us would enjoy a well-deserved post-match beer, Stuart would keep playing with the rest of the club’s youngsters until it was too dark to play.”

Stuart Broad back at Egerton Park Cricket Club to promote his family's Broad Appeal, which raises money and awareness for motor neurone disease

Stuart, who grew up in Waltham and Whissendine, was playing for the first XI at Egerton Park CC right up to 2004 before his professional career took off with Leicestershire CCC and then Nottinghamshire CCC.

He was initially seen as a batsman, following in the footsteps of dad, Chris, who opened the batting for England and Notts in the 1990s.

Stuart’s bowling developed markedly when he spent a winter with Egerton Park’s Australian sister club, Hopper’s Crossing.

That first England appearance came a one-day international in August 2006 when he 20, followed by his Test debut the following year in Sri Lanka.

Stuart Broad pictured back at Egerton Park Cricket Club's pavilion in 2013

What happened next was remarkable as Stuart claimed 602 wickets (before today’s play), the fifth highest haul by any bowler in Test match history. He also scored more than 3,000 runs for England won four Ashes’ series.

He has much to occupy himself in retirement, following the birth of his first child in November, Annabella, with partner Mollie King, the BBC Radio One DJ.

Stuart also co-owns the Tap and Run pub at Upper Broughton and the Griffin Inn at Swithland with cricketing pal, Harry Gurney.